Behold, the Navy’s “green” riverine command boat:

The Navy took a step toward breaking its dependence on petroleum Friday, powering up a boat with fuel derived in part from seaweed.
In a demonstration at Norfolk Naval Station, an experimental boat was put through a series of maneuvers using a 50/50 blend of diesel fuel and an algae-based biofuel.
It was the first time a biofueled Navy surface vessel has been driven at full power. Navy officials declared the test an unqualified success.
The camouflage-colored 49-foot riverine command boat, a fast, agile craft designed for coastal and inland operations, reached a top speed of 44.5 knots, kicking up clouds of salt spray as it performed sudden stops, circles, reversals and tight U-turns.
The boat’s performance was indistinguishable from what it would have been using standard diesel fuel, said Rear Adm. Philip Cullom, director of the Navy’s Energy and Environmental Readiness Division, after the test.
“This is just one step along the way, but it’s a history-making step,” Cullom declared at pierside after the ride, dubbing the biofueled boat “a mean, green riverine machine.”
The sea service, whose vessels consume 80,000 barrels of oil a day, is under orders from Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to fuel half of its total energy consumption from alternative sources, such as biofuels and nuclear power, by 2020.
As a milestone toward that goal, the Navy plans to deploy a Great Green Fleet – a carrier strike group composed of ships and aircraft that don’t rely on petroleum – by 2016. The name is a throwback to the Great White Fleet that cruised around the world a century ago under coal power, releasing the Navy from the vagaries of wind.

Hey, as long as it does the job it’s supposed to do without compromising its mission, then I’m OK with it. But in a future United States with Pentagon budget cuts looming, I’m not sure that ships that can only run on special fuels are the most cost-effective solution moving forward.